Great American Smokeout[1]
The
Great American Smoke out is an informal holiday aimed at encouraging citizens
to quit or plan to quit smoking. Smoking is a habit that involves consumption
of tobacco smoke, which has been shown to cause a variety of cancers, most
notably lung and mouth cancer. Lung cancer is currently the leading cause of
Cancer death in the United States and the most preventable type of cancer
worldwide. The Great American Smokeout is promoted by the American Cancer
Society and is held on the third Thursday of November each year in an effort to
reduce cases of preventable cancers, reduce secondhand smoke and improve the health
of all Americans.
Great
American Smokeout Facts & Quotes
·
The
holiday began in 1970, when a man in Massachusetts asked people to give up smoking
for one day, and donate the money saved to the local high school scholarship
fund.
·
According
to the Center for Disease Control, smoking is responsible for 1 in 3 cancer-related
deaths, and 1 in 5 deaths from any cause. Worldwide, tobacco use causes
more than 5 million deaths per year.
·
The
Center for Disease Control state that life expectancy for smokers is 10 years
less than that of non-smokers.
·
The
Center for Disease Control states that middle-aged man who smokes, triples his
risk of dying from some type of heart disease.
·
More
Doctors Smoke Camels than Any Other Cigarette - line used in 1949 commercial
for Camel Cigarettes.
Great
American Smokeout Top Events and Things to Do
·
If
you are a smoker, call 1-800-QUIT-NOW for support in quitting. You can
also get help from organizations like smokefree.gov and ucanquit2.org.
·
Organize
a sporting event like soccer or softball as a
way to have fun and otherwise help smokers take their minds off of smoking.
·
Talk
to someone you know who smokes and challenge them to quit for the day.
·
Give
out sugarless gum to otherwise smokers as friendly gesture to promote an
alternative.
·
Watch
movies and documentaries that aim to uncover the tobacco industry and impact of
tobacco addictions:
1) The Insider (1999)
2) Addiction Incorporated (2011)
3) Dying for a Smoke (1992)
4) Smoke & Mirrors: A History of Denial (2000)
SAINT
ELIZABETH OF HUNGARY
Luke, Chapter 19,
Verse 41-42
41
As he drew near, he saw the city and wept over it, 42saying,
“If this day you only knew what makes for PEACE—but now it is hidden
from your eyes.
The results of the 2022 midterm election reveal that women and the next generation voted overwhelmingly for democrats. Our Lord must indeed be weeping for we do not know what makes peace and have chosen abortion and the love of money over our Lord.
Life, Liberty, and Happiness
I believe that the abortion of the unborn is an injustice that must be
corrected. Unfortunately, about half of the voting population believe that
abortion is a right that is protected by the US Constitution. Many profess the
mantra: My body; my choice.
I believe that the American Declaration of Independence which states governments are established to protect unalienable rights that come from God and that among these are the right to life, Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Are these words just words highlighted by men influenced by the age of enlightenment or are they words inspired by the will of the creator or dare we say God? America’s founders realized that these rights are natural rights that come directly from God and as such they must be protected.
Thomas Jefferson who was the principal author of our Declaration of Independence to England and the World; stated: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Much of our misery in the world is caused by laws that reverse the order ensuring that wealth trumps liberty and liberty trumps life. Jefferson and our founding fathers of this country knew that God’s law had a primary focus on life. Jefferson’s argument is not that the right to life, the right to liberty, and the right to pursue happiness originate in government, but that these rights have a divine origin. Jefferson argued that the job of all governments was to “secure” rights that God had already granted. In other words, the rights to life and liberty do not come into being with the force of government fiat; life and liberty are pre-political rights already granted by God. Acts of legislators or the rulings of courts when established must ensure that laws are enacted and enforced that support life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Today, we have lost that concept.
Indeed, as Jefferson noted in our declaration men “are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.” Whether it is self-evident or not, it is the philosophical belief in the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness that helped make America a light to the nations. Let’s continue to promote and defend all three with Life first, followed by liberty and then the pursuit of happiness. To protect liberty at the expense of life is an injustice.
After the American revolution again in the establishment of the American Constitution we see that the framers again reasserted the primacy of life in the Preamble of the U.S. Constitution[1] which reads:
"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
It is my contention that the Preamble is the mission statement for the whole constitution. In other words, the entire constitution is designed to bring about the mission stated in the preamble. Therefore, if we focus on the statement: “and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity” we see that the U.S. Constitution is designed to secure the blessings of liberty for both the living and the next generation “our posterity”. Therefore, the unborn have a right to life.
St. Elizabeth of Hungary[2]
Scrutiny of the Powerful
St. Elizabeth,
Duchess of Thuringia, it is said that the servant of God lost her mother,
Gertrude, Queen of Hungary, about the year 1220. In the spirit of a holy
Christian daughter, she gave abundant alms, redoubled her prayers and
mortifications, exhausted the resources of her charity for the relief of that
dear soul. God revealed to her that she had not done too much. One night the
deceased appeared to her with a sad and emaciated countenance; she placed
herself on her knees next to the bed, and said to her, weeping, “My daughter,
you see at your feet your mother overwhelmed with suffering. I come to implore
you to multiply your suffrages, that Divine Mercy may deliver me from the
frightful torments I endure.
Oh! how much are
those to be pitied who exercise authority over others? I expiate now the faults
that I committed upon the throne. Oh! my daughter, I pray you by the pangs I
endured when bringing you into the world, by the cares and anxieties which your
education cost me, I conjure you to deliver me from my torments.” Elizabeth,
deeply touched, arose immediately, took the discipline to blood, and implored
God, with tears, to have mercy on her mother, Gertrude, declaring that she
would not cease to pray until she had obtained her deliverance. Her prayers
were heard.
St. Elizabeth of Hungary[3]
Elizabeth was the daughter of the Hungarian King Andrew II.
At the age of four (b. 1207), she was brought to the court of her future
husband, Ludwig, landgrave of Thuringia. After her marriage in 1221, she very
conscientiously fulfilled her duties both toward her husband and as a servant
of God.
During the night she would rise from bed and spend long
periods in prayer. Zealously she performed all types of charitable acts; she
put herself at the service of widows, orphans, the sick, the needy.
During a famine she generously distributed all the grain
from her stocks, cared for lepers in one of the hospitals she established,
kissed their hands and feet. For the benefit of the indigent, she provided
suitable lodging. After the early death of her husband (in 1227 while on a
crusade led by Emperor Frederick II), Elizabeth laid aside all royal dignities
in order to serve God more freely. She put on simple clothing, became a
tertiary of St. Francis, and showed great patience and humility.
Nor was she spared intense suffering - the goods belonging
to her as a widow were withheld, she was forced to leave Wartburg. In Eisenach
no one dared receive her out of fear of her enemies. Upon much pleading a
shepherd of the landgrave permitted her to use an abandoned pig sty. No one was
allowed to visit or aid her; with her three children, of whom the youngest was
not more than a few months old, she was forced to wander about in the winter's
cold.
In 1228 she took the veil of the Sisters of the Third Order
of St. Francis at Marburg and there built a hospital with some property still
belonging to her. She retained for herself only a small mud house. All her
strength and care were now devoted to the poor and the sick, while she obtained
the few things she needed by spinning. Young in years but rich in good works,
she slept in the Lord in 1231, only twenty-four years old.
Things to
Do
·
Love for the poor is characteristic of every
genuine follower of Christ, those lacking the truth are the poorest of the
poor, spend some time on a regular basis studying your faith (by reading or
taking a home study course) so that you will be prepared to feed those who are
hungry for the truth.
·
Teach your children the Corporal and
Spiritual Works of Mercy and give them practical examples.
·
Have your children help you bake
bread like St. Elizabeth and distribute some to your neighbors.
·
St. Elizabeth is the patroness of the Franciscan
Third Order (tertiary) and of all Catholic Charities. Find out more about what
a third order is, particularly the Franciscan Third Order.
·
See Nameday
Ideas for St. Elizabeth, including dessert and symbols and prayers.
·
Follow these links for some wonderful works of
art of St. Elizabeth:
o Anonymous
Sienese medallion (XIV Century): St.
Elizabeth of Hungary
o Collinson,
James: St. Elizabeth of Hungary
o Martini,
Simone: St. Clare and St. Elizabeth of Hungary.
o Martini,
Simone: St. Elizabeth, St. Margaret and Henry of Hungary
National UnFriend a
frenemy[4]
National UnFriend Day (NUD) is an unofficial holiday
designed to promote unfriending other Facebook users that are not true friends.
Social media now provides access to just about anyone, anywhere on the
globe.
However, this easy global access exposes personal
information to theft or misuse and unnecessary cluttering by other's junk
posts. In this digital age, it is imperative that identities remain protected,
and that time spent on social media be reduced and replaced by face-to-face
human interaction. National UnFriend Day was originally conceived and proposed
by TV personality Jimmy Kimmel on November 17, 2010 in an effort to remind
society of the true meaning of friendship.
Kimmel believes that there are many Facebook offenses that can lead to
unfriending someone, some of which include, posting too much, spell-checking
too little, repetitively posting the same kind of material, not googling before
asking questions, being on Facebook all the time and sending in-app Facebook
requests for games. In addition to unfriending irritating offenders, it is
advisable to unfriend those whom you no longer have steady contact with and any
unknown users that may have access to your information and posts.
National
UnFriend Day Facts & Quotes
·
According to a report by Common Sense Media, a
nonprofit organization dedicated to helping navigate the world of media and
technology, teenagers spend about 9 hours a day consuming media, 1.5 hours
of which is spent on social media.
·
As of January 2016, compared to other social
networks, Facebook is the leading social network with approximately 1.6 billion
active monthly users. This is in comparison to WhatsApp (900 million
active monthly users), Instagram (400 million active monthly users) and Twitter
(320 million active monthly users).
·
The average Facebook user has 338 friends.
27% of young Facebook users have more than 500 friends, compared an
average of 100 friends for 72% of Facebook users who are older than 65 years of
age.
·
36% of Facebook users strongly dislike it when
someone shares too much information or photos about themselves, as well as when
they post photos of others without asking for permission.
·
I encourage you to cut out some of the friend
fat in your life. A friend is someone you have a special relationship
with. It's not someone who asks which Harry Potter character you are. - Jimmy
Kimmel, November 2010
National
UnFriend Day Top Events and Things to Do
·
Go through your privacy settings on Facebook.
Keep in mind that some of the people that you have previously friended may not
be friends at all. Your privacy settings can control who is able to see your
content and whose content will show up on your news feed.
·
Decide who you are going to unfriend on
Facebook. Facebook also offers the possibility of making friends into
acquaintances. Your acquaintance list can then be separated from your friend
list, allowing you to publish and read 'friend-only' content.
·
Review your posting habits. Have you been
posting too much content, or have you been posting photos of your friends,
without receiving permission? Check to see whether you have also violated any
Facebook UnFriend Day Offenses as defined by Jimmy Kimmel.
·
Watch movies about friendship. Here are
some to consider:
1) Stand by Me (1986)
2) The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005)
3) Good Will Hunting (1997)
4) The Intouchables (2011)
5) The Social Network (2010)
6) The Bucket List (2007)
7) As Good as it Gets (1997)
Thursday Feast
Thursday
is the day of the week that our Lord gave himself up for consumption. Thursday
commemorates the last supper. Some theologians believe after Sunday Thursday is
the holiest day of the week. We should then try to make this day special by
making a visit to the blessed sacrament chapel, Mass or even stop by the grave
of a loved one. Why not plan to count the blessing of the week and thank our
Lord. Plan a special meal. Be at Peace.
Feast of the day: Hungarian Goulash
Daily
Devotions/Practices
·
St. Martin is patron saint of wine growers, wine
makers and vintners. In France, the tasting of the new wine is done today. Have
a Martinmas gathering, serving this year's Noveau
Beaujolais wine from France.
·
Today's Fast: Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Today's Fast: Individuals
with Mental Illness
·
do
a personal eucharistic stations of the cross.
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
· Rosary.
[1]FindLaw
Staff | Reviewed by Laura Temme, Esq. Preamble to the Constitution. 18
07 2022. https://constitution.findlaw.com/preamble.html#:~:text=The%20preamble%20to%20the%20Constitution%20is%20an%20introduction,intention%20of%20the%20entire%20document%20full%20of%20laws.
10 11 2022.
[2]Schouppe S.J., Rev. Fr. F. X..
Purgatory Explained
[3]http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2017-11-17
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